Method of making expander steel



Dec. 31, 1929. G. c. BECK 1,741,907

METHOD OF MAKING EXPANDER STEEL Original Filed March 18, 192'! 2 sh t -s l INVENTOR Georye CfflBec/P BY W w A/ ATTORNEY Dec. 31, 1929. I G. c. BECK 1,741,907

METHOD OF MAKING EXRANDER STEEL Original Filed March 18, 192'? s et h m, 2

1 &\\\\ \\\\\\\\\\\\\Y INVENTOR Qeorye azsrec ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 31, 1929 r 7 1,741,907

UNITED, STATES PATENT OFFICE GEORGE c. :BnoK, or SPOKANE, wnsnrne'ron METHOD or MAKING nxrnivnnn STEEL Original application filed March 18, 1927, Serial No. 176,562. Divided and. this application filed September 4,

. 1928. Serial No. 303,846.

The object of this invention is to provide a Fig. 7, is an edge view of the strip shownovel method for corrugating 1 spring steel ing an integer of one set of sections thereof strips into various contours desirable to render shaped to cause the strip to assume and rethem efiective as piston ring expander's. tain a curved contour.

A; feature of the improved method is to i Like characters of reference designatesimcause the formed steel to inherently and ilar parts throughout the different figures of permanently assume and retain a curved conthe drawings. tour. r r In the following description, and as shown These ring expanders are made of .relain the drawings the method referred to will tively thin spring steel and the operation be that designed to make substantially the of corrugatingthe steel strips is carried on type of corrugation shown in my U. S. Patent without heating'the strips, hence, it is a cold No; 1,534,490, issued April 21, 1925. Furmethod. 1 ther, this application is divided out from my The method ofmy invention'preferably inpending application filed Mar. 18, 1927, volvesmeans for forming, corrugations, of Serial No. 176,562. However, by merely whatever formdesired,and after the 'corru changing the shape of the forming means gations are formed, themethod involves a and the shaping means, the invention is separate operation on the strip, as formed, equally adapted for the manufacture of eX- with a view of causing the formed strip to pander steel of other shapes than that shown.

assume a curved oontour, and in the present I have shown a frame which may consist 7o case, this latter feature is carried out by of side walls 1, having suitable journals 2, in

slightly altering one set. of corrugated inwhich a power driven shaft 3, bears, only one tegers r wall and journal being shown. On shaft 3 It is a feature of my improved method to is suitably mounted any formof crank which hold one set of corrugated integers, without maybe a disc 4, as shown, the same being conchanging the form thereof, while the form centrically mounted on said shaft. A crank of the other set of integers is being changed. pin 5,is eocentrically mounted on disc/4 and The invention will be more fully described Iconnect thereto, one end of a forming wheel 1 in connection with the accompanying drawactuatingupawl 6, as shown at 7. A guiding ings and will be more particularly pointed stud 8, guides said pawl 6, in a manner to inso out in and by'the appendedclaims. termittently actuate the forming wheels, to r In the drawings: be later described. I have'shown a presser Fig, 1, is a view in sideelevation of a head arm 9, pivoted to the frame 1, at 10, machine foroarrying outthe improved methand having a presser or shaper head 11,.to be 0d and illustrating the shaping means while later described. Said arm 9, is actuated the latter'is being retracted from the formed to be moved upwardly and downwardly by strip. 1 power link 12, the lowerend of which is piv- Fig.2, is a view similar to Fig. 1, showing oted at 13, to said arm, and the upper end of the shaping means functioning to shape an which is connected to pin 5.

. integer of one set thereof. Reference will next be made to the form- Fig.3, is a sectional view on line 8- 3 of ing means. Fig. 2, with theforming wheels in elevation. The forming means, as shown, involves a Fig. 4, is a sectional view online 4-4 of setof wheels 14 and 15, which are rotatable Fig. 3, showing the shaping means in a fund on studs 16 and 17 respectively, and which tioning position. i studs are mounted on frame 1. Said wheels Fig. 5, is an enlarged plan view of a'porhave intermeshing teeth 18 and 19, respection of. the formed strip, which may be of tively, which are strip forming portions or indefinite length, and showing the same beelements, the spaces 20 and 21, respectively,

fore it is reshaped. betweensaid teeth being also forming'ele? 6, is an edge viewthereof; ments. This mesh relation of the wheels 14 and 15, insures their rotating in unison, one being driven from the other. As shown the right hand end of pawl 6, engages the uppermost teeth of wheel 4, and every time the disc 4, makes a half revolution, in a clockwise direction, viewing Fig. 1, the wheels14 and 15*will.be rotated totheextent of one tooth and will form one corrugated integer of the strip.

On the remainder ofthe revolutionof disc 4, the pawl 6 will be retracted to the position shown at Fig. 1. The stud 8, is so located that when the wheel 14 has beenrotated to the extent of one tooth thereof, the pawl 6, will be raised out of engagement with the wheel. The strip,,in blank, is-indicatedi in edge elevation at 22, andpassesthrough any suitable guide-23, securedto-theframe 1.

I will next describe the formof expander shown in'Figs. 6 .to 8s This expander is .formedwithalternately and oppositely disposed bearing; sections, and intermediate supporting sections. I. will term those sections whichrare disposed radial ly outwardly as the outer or. piston ring. enga ng sections and willindicate them at. 24, mo comprising one integer of theformed strip. It will be-notedthat sections24, are convexedly formed so that. when tensioned against the piston ring, they will more or less flatten by reason of the fact that they are arched one less radiusthan the radius of the piston, ring with which they coact. Likewise, when the inner sections 25, leave the forming rolls. 14 and 15, they are .convexly arched radially inwardly toward the base of the piston ring groove,.whichthey are designed to engage. I will designate=the intermediate supporting sections at 2.6, and it will be seen that these sections are disposed sufliciently radially so that they will sup? port or stiffen the sections 24 and 25. The teeth of the wheels 14 and 15, are shaped to form a strip having these elongated outer findinuer sections 24 and 25, and the inter.- mediate supporting sections 26,. and I will refer to each bend or section as an integer of the formed strip.

If theformed strip, as shown in. Fig. 6, was in no way treated after leaving; wheels 14 and 15, it, would maintain itself straight, or in a straightcondition, and itwould be necessary to manually benda cut portion thereof around a piston groove. This is considered such a defect that. specially bent. and previously cut expander steel isnow being sold. Besides tl1is defect,it is usually found best toroll-the folmed'steel on aispool in or.- derto get it; into-convenient and compact shape for. the market and shipment. Thus, when a mechanicgets ready to nse it, and releasesthe rolhof springsteel, the latter. in? stunt-1y seeks to straightenout,,much after the. manner of a=clockz-spring wheirthe latter issrreileasedi from a tensioned condition.

Now it is the object of my invention to make a completely formed corrugated strip of piston ring expanding spring steel in such a manner that the finished steel will take a curved contour so that when a length is cut off for a piston groove, this length will fit or hug the groove. Thus the niechanics hands will be free to spread the ring over the piston without having to hold the steel into the groove.

I will. next refer. to that portion of the mechanism for carrying out this phase of the method.

An anvil is designated at 27, and is removably secured to frame 1, by screws 28 Thifsanvil 27,, has what I will term a holding portion 29, which, as Willbe seen from Fig. 2,; is shaped to correspond and receive one integer 24, and apart of integer 25, together with an intermediate integer 26. Of course this holdingv portionmay be extended to receive more of theformed strip than is herein shown, but the important thing is that the'holding portion 29, is shaped to receive the; strip without changing the shape of the stripportion held thereby.

In other words, the'portion 29, functions solely as a holding portion. Contiguous with this holding portion 29; isa shaping portion 30, andthe latter is so positioned that. when theintegers 24 to26 are disposed upon the holdingportion29, the next endmost adjacent integer 25, willengage the shaping portion 30,.asin accordance with this specific form of the invention, I concentrate theshaping op eration only on sections which are the inner sections. Now itwill be seen that the in: ner sections 25, when the formed stripleavcs the'wheels 14and 15,- are convexed radially inwardly, aswill'be seen from Fig. 6. This shaping portion 30, is convex, with a view of changingthe shape of sections 25, from the inwardly convex form shown in Fig. 6, to the outwardly convex. form showninFig. 7. The coacting orcompanionelement of the shaping means is the presser; head 11, which is provided with holding portion31, complemental to the holding portion=29o the anvil, to securely hold aportion of the stripwhile the latter is-beingreshaped. The head 11, is also provided with a shaping portion 32, which coacts with shaping portion 30.

From the foregoing, it will now be clear that by reversing theconvexity of one of the sets of sections, which in this disclosure, comprises sections25, I cause thestrip tOELSSUJDQ a curved form when it leaves the shaping means, as generally indicated in Fig.- 2. The extentandcharacter of. the reshaping may be Varied as desired, either as regards the form of strip shown, or as regards. other forms of strips. In the'present instance, the reverse convexity of sections 25 is made on-a radius greater than the radius of the piston ring groove so that the inner sections will, if necessary, flex into full length engagement with the base of the groove, and in most cases, will form a saddle for engagement with such groove.

While the sections are shaped toward the round of the surface with which they coact, it is clear that they will have a much longer area of engagement therewith than if these sections were curved the reverseto theround they engage. Now it will be clear that the strip is not acted upon, in the performance of this operation as a whole, but it is acted upon as regards individual sections thereof, and in the present case, this individual action is consections formed in the strip. After the wheels have been actuated, then, friction holds them in the position from which they have been released. As pin 5, begins its downward movenient, the presser head 11, is moved down wardly toward the anvil, as shown in Fig. 2, until it comes into pressure engagement therewith. As pin 5, passes over the lower dead center, the final and maximum pressure is applied, firmly holding certain sections of the strip, and being the remaining section. Thus, the forming means is idle when the shaping j means is functioning and the shaping means is idle when the forming means is functionm it is believed that the improved method will be fully understood from. the foregoing and I do not wish to be limited thereby except for such limitations as the claims may import.

I claim: 1. The herein-described method of making expander steel, which consists, in corrugating a spring steel strip to form alternately and oppositely disposed outer and inner bearing sections, and in bending the formed inner sections outwardly to cause the finished strip to assume a curved contour.

2. The herein-described method of making expander steel,which consists, in bending a spring steel strip to form alternately disposed outer and inner elongated bearing sections, and in bending the inner bearing sections convexly outwardly to substantially fit the base of the piston groove.

3. The hereindescr1bed method of making expander steel, which consists, in bending a spring steel strip to form alternately disposed outer and inner elongated bearing sections and intermediately disposed supporting sections, and in shaping the inner sections outwardly to cause the finished strip to assume a curved contour.

l. The herein-described method of making expander steel,which consists, in corrugating a spring steel strip of indefinite length into a series of oppositely disposed bearing sections, and inre-shaping the inner of said sections outwardly to cause the finished strip to assume and retain a curved contour irrespective of its length.

In witness whereof I have hereunto aflixed my signature.

. GEORGE G. BECK. 

